Doug HansonShortly after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, citizens of New Orleans had their firearms unlawfully confiscated under orders from former New Orleans Police Chief Eddie Compass. So during a time when the means of self-defense were most needed, the Second Amendment rights of the cityÂ’s law-abiding residents were swept away based on a gross misinterpretation of a suspect state emergency powers law.
After hearing about the illegal gun confiscations, the National Rifle Association (NRA) filed suit in federal court and obtained a preliminary injunction that stopped the gun seizure. Not only did New Orleans ignore the court ruling, it also claimed that the gun confiscations never occurred! The NRA then filed a motion for contempt that additionally ordered the return of all seized firearms.
Finally last Wednesday, in what was seen as as a “landmark victory for NRA and law-abiding gun owners,” Judge Carl J. Barbier of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana turned down a motion for dismissal by the City of New Orleans and held that, the Second Amendment applies to law-abiding residents in the State of Louisiana and the City of New Orleans.